The Mending Studio - Chapter 25

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 25
Go Jin’s eyes narrowed to slits.
Yeon Cheon-san was a creature that had lived for thousands of years—a monster in all but name.
Though he had lingered at a single stage of cultivation for ages, it would hardly be surprising if such a being suddenly broke through a barrier one day.

“But what connection does he have to this Yup Jang-cheong?”
“That much, we cannot yet determine.”
“Send word to those we have placed in Dae-yeon.”

The Emperor tapped his fingers lightly against the table.

“Bring me solid intelligence. Not gossip and rumors.”
“I shall obey your command.”

Similar deliberations were underway in Dae-ha-guk as well.
The atmosphere there was considerably heavier.

“Word came that he is establishing a Sadang and commissioning a golden statue.”
“That is not the manner of respect one would show an ordinary Susa.”
“Perhaps if we were dealing with a master on the threshold of Bi-seung, or one who had already ascended to Sang-gye—but…”

The speaker’s voice trailed away.
The Dae-ha Emperor leaned back slowly against his chair.

“It is difficult to believe Yeon Yang-nyeon has lost his mind.”
“Indeed.”
“Then we must consider the more dangerous possibility.”

Someone swallowed dryly.

“Are you suggesting the balance of power in Joong-joo itself may collapse, Your Majesty?”
“I do not yet know.”

The Emperor offered no hasty conclusions.

“Since I do not know, I shall verify. Send formal envoys, and activate our Miljeong in the region.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”

Ja-cheong Seongji was no exception.
The senior officials gathered within the Ja-cheong-jeon debated the news from Dae-yeon for some time.

“A problem may have arisen for Yeon Cheon-san.”
“The opposite is equally possible.”
“The opposite would mean…a breakthrough in Pa-gyeong?”

Several eyes naturally drifted toward the seat of honor.
Seo Gyeong-cheon, the master of Ja-cheong Seongji, did not rush to judgment.
He fell silent in thought before speaking.

“Send someone to Dae-yeon to confirm directly.”
“Understood.”
“And what of the Taehyeon Seongji Hoe-mu? Only two days remain.”
“Proceed as scheduled. Send people to Je-do to monitor news by passing through Jeon-song.”

An elder asked carefully.

“Will you truly continue with the Hoe-mu under these circumstances?”

Seo Gyeong-cheon answered with calm composure.

“War hasn’t even broken out yet. There’s no reason to shatter a covenant kept once a decade over unconfirmed rumors.”

So it was that the same name circulated through Joong-joo, whispered in every corner.
Yup Jang-cheong.
Yet few enough to count on one hand actually knew where the man behind that name could be found.
Meanwhile, on Je-do in Dae-yeon, the construction of the Sadang proceeded without pause for breath.
Three days and nights had passed since the imperial edict descended.
The oversight ministry had chosen Dong-san, to the east of Je-do, as the site.
Mountains and water converged in harmony; it commanded a view of the entire island below.
Yeon Yang-nyeon granted approval the moment he received the report.
From the next day onward, hundreds of artisans and laborers poured into Dong-san.
Pillars rose, roofs were hoisted, and broad stone staircases and plazas took shape with remarkable speed.
It was imperial work, so timber, stone, and manpower would never run short.
In scarcely two days and nights, Dong-san had been utterly transformed.
The problem was the Geum-sin. Too few people had laid eyes on Yup Jang-cheong’s face directly.
The one person who knew his appearance at all, Yu Jang-ha, had already entered seclusion; word had spread from the Gi-sa-bu that he’d cut off all outside contact upon sensing the onset of Pa-gyeong. So the task of determining the Geum-sin’s likeness fell to Yeon Bing-shim.

“Make the eyes a touch softer, please.”

Yeon Bing-shim examined the face the artisan had molded with care.

“The mouth as well—make it more natural than this. He doesn’t wear such a stern expression.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”

The artisans worked with hands trembling, scarcely daring to breathe.
Some wondered just how terrifying a person must be for the Emperor to hasten a Sadang in their honor so urgently.
But the Yup Jang-cheong that Yeon Bing-shim remembered was altogether different.
Always unhurried, offering warm tea, pressing his paintings and calligraphy into her hands as though they were nothing.
So she had no wish to force majesty onto the Geum-sin itself.
Yet the objects in its hands were another matter. In its left hand she placed a golden Gi-pan; in its right, a brush.
Behind its back she arranged a Go-geum and a Jang-geom. The composition was meant to reveal at a glance the many arts Yup Jang-cheong had demonstrated.
A few days later.
Atop Dong-san stood several halls and a broad plaza, with a hundred-some stone steps completed.
From below the mountain, the eye was first drawn to a towering gate pavilion.
Its nameplate was still hidden beneath crimson cloth.
As noon drew near.
A contingent of Geum-o-wi in black armor opened the way. Behind them, the imperial carriage rolled slowly into the plaza below Dong-san.
Yeon Yang-nyeon descended first, followed by Yeon Bing-shim. The ministers already assembled there bowed in unison.
Beyond the plaza, the crowd was far more chaotic.
Not only people from Je-do, but spies from various nations and Susa from different martial schools had mixed themselves among the throng.
All studied the Emperor’s and his daughter’s faces intently.
There was no forced smile to be seen.
Yeon Yang-nyeon’s expression was solemn; at the corners of Yeon Bing-shim’s mouth lingered a smile full of anticipation.
Those who saw this felt their thoughts grow complicated.

‘Has something happened to Yeon Cheon-san?’
‘Then who on earth is Yup Jang-cheong?’

Several Susa subtly moved their Beop-gi.
They sought to discern whether the Emperor’s and his daughter’s spiritual aura had slowed compared to usual, or instead grown more vibrant.
They tried to gauge whether concealed grief lay beneath forced composure, or whether joy truly filled their hearts.
Then it happened.
A minister overseeing the construction hurried forward and bowed deeply.

“Your Majesty.”
“Speak.”
“All construction on the Jangcheong Temple is complete. The Cheon-sa from the Gi-sa-bu have confirmed that today is an auspicious day.”

Yeon Yang-nyeon looked up toward the gate pavilion on the mountain.
Moments later, his voice rang out across the plaza.

“Then there’s no reason to delay further.”

He adjusted the folds of his robe.

“Begin the dedication ceremony at once.”

The moment Yeon Yang-nyeon’s command fell, the Geum-o-wi split left and right.
The ministers and royal family moved forward along the stone steps in their appointed order.

“We greet His Majesty the Emperor and the Princess!”

A resounding cry erupted all at once from below the mountain and across the plaza.
The sound of falling to their knees rippled through the crowd like waves.
Yeon Yang-nyeon raised his hand.

“Rise, all of you.”

The people stood. He ascended the stone steps slowly alongside Yeon Bing-shim, knights in black armor stationed at even intervals on both sides. Not a single sword hilt stirred, yet a heavy tension settled across the entire mountain path.
All eyes remained fixed on the peak above.
The plaque draped in crimson cloth.
And the identity of the Sadang that lay beyond it.
The center of mystery that had shaken Je-do for days was about to be revealed.
Yeon Yang-nyeon halted before the gate tower.
Behind him, the court’s ministers stood in two columns.
Below them were the invited dignitaries and attendants, while at the plaza’s edge, countless commoners craned their necks to see.
Yeon Yang-nyeon gazed down at the assembled crowd in silence for a long moment.
The longer the silence stretched, the more the murmuring subsided.
Only when quiet had settled completely did he finally speak.

“Among all gathered here today, none can doubt why I have built a Sadang for this one person.”

Eyes flickered across the crowd. He had spoken true.
There were elderly officials who had submitted memorials to the Emperor only to be turned away at the gates, and foreign spies who had come to verify rumors.
Everyone wanted the same answer.
Yeon Yang-nyeon glanced at Yeon Bing-shim standing beside him, then turned his gaze forward once more.

“Yup Jang-cheong has bestowed upon Dae-yeon a profound grace.”

His voice carried clearly down to the foot of the mountain.

“This grace does not end with today alone. It is a grace that will influence the destiny of Dae-yeon for tens of thousands of years—perhaps even longer.”

The plaza stirred with great commotion.

“Tens of thousands of years?”
“What possible grace could warrant such words?”
“Has he not become an immortal sage?”

Yeon Yang-nyeon did not wait for the murmuring to subside.

“Moreover, the command to build this Sadang was given directly by Yeon Cheon-san of the royal family.”

This time the reaction was far greater.
The name of Yeon Cheon-san was sometimes received in Dae-yeon with more weight than even the Emperor’s.
The pillar of a dynasty that had endured for millennia.
The very fact that he had directly ordered the construction of this Sadang shifted all the swirling suspicions in one direction at once.

‘So Yeon Cheon-san is well.’

‘Or rather, I may have received a great opportunity from that Yup Jang-cheong.’

The expressions of the spies scattered throughout the plaza hardened rapidly. Several of them were already preparing to withdraw.
This was information that needed to reach their home countries and sects as quickly as possible. The common people’s reaction, however, was entirely different.

“Then is he truly an Immortal?”
“The Patriarch of the Imperial Family himself ordered a shrine to be built for him.”
“I should come often and leave offerings of incense.”
“If he protects Dae-yeon, that’s good fortune for us as well.”

There was even a minor quarrel breaking out over who would offer the first incense.
Yeon Bing-shim suppressed a smile watching this.
She couldn’t imagine what expression Yup Jang-cheong would make if he saw this sight.
Most likely, he would struggle to believe that such a shrine had been built for him in the first place.
At that thought, her lips softened further.
Yeon Yang-nyeon raised his hand again.
The murmuring subsided.

“We now begin the dedication ceremony of the Jang-cheong Shrine.”

He turned around.
A crimson cloth covering the massive gatehouse swayed lightly in the breeze.
Yeon Yang-nyeon grasped the edge of the cloth.
And without hesitation, he pulled downward.
Whoosh!
The crimson cloth billowed away dramatically. Three characters that had been hidden beneath were finally revealed in the sunlight.
.
Countless eyes from below the mountain fixed upon the plaque all at once.
From that moment on, the name Yup Jang-cheong was no longer merely a name from rumor.
A shrine bearing his name materialized in the very heart of Dae-yeon.
The ceremony did not end after the plaque was revealed.
Yeon Yang-nyeon and Yeon Bing-shim were led by the shrine director into the Jang-cheong Shrine.
The interior was far more spacious than what appeared from outside.
Each hall retained the scent of fresh wood, and golden lacquer decorated the pillars and beams with meticulous precision. The construction bore such careful craftsmanship in every corner that it was difficult to believe it had been built in mere days.
When they reached the front of the main hall at the innermost point, the shrine director stopped.

“Your Majesty. Only the final ritual remains.”

Inside the main hall stood a colossal statue, many times the height of a man.
It too was completely covered with a crimson cloth.
Yeon Bing-shim gazed at its silhouette beyond the fabric.
While determining the appearance of the golden statue, she had summoned the craftsmen several times for revisions.
His countenance should not appear overly solemn.
His eyes and mouth should be rendered as gently as his true visage.
And his various skills should be displayed at a glance.
The result now stood before her eyes.
The shrine director took a step back.

“When Your Majesty removes the cloth with your own hands, the dedication ceremony will be complete.”

Yeon Yang-nyeon nodded. He stepped toward the golden statue.
He hesitated for a moment, but then grasped the edge of the crimson cloth.
Whoosh!
The cloth slid to the floor.
The interior of the main hall blazed with light.
The golden statue emerged.
Made in the image of the face Yeon Bing-shim remembered, its appearance bore considerable resemblance to Yup Jang-cheong.
It wore a golden crown upon its head, its robes carved as though fluttering in the wind.
In its left hand, a Gi-pan.
In its right hand, a brush.
A Go-geum rested against his back, and a Jang-geom hung at his waist.
It was the form of one person carrying within them the many arts of a master.

“…….”

Yeon Yang-nyeon fell silent for a moment.
It was nothing more than a gilded sculpture.
That was what he tried to believe.
Whooooom—
A faint tremor swept through the hall.
Yeon Yang-nyeon’s eyes widened.
A subtle radiance began to flow from the surface of the Geum-sin.
At first it seemed like sunlight reflecting off the gilding. But soon the color shifted.
Red and blue light, gold and violet, mingled like a thin mist.
Above the Geum-sin’s head, a golden lotus bloomed faintly, ringed in five-colored radiance.

“This is…….”

Yeon Yang-nyeon’s voice dropped.
In the next moment.
Do-un flowed forth.
Though invisible to the eye, Yeon Yang-nyeon, a practitioner, felt it clearly.
A pure and profound energy emanated quietly from the Geum-sin, filling the entire main hall.
It was not a coercive oppression forced upon those present. Yet standing within it, his breathing naturally settled and his mind became lucid.
Yeon Yang-nyeon stepped back a pace.

‘Just from erecting a single Geum-sin?’

He had seen countless Sadang and divine statues.
Since ancient times, Dae-yeon had no shortage of Sadang dedicated to sages and immortals and to great Susa who had earned renown.
Yet he had never heard of Do-un arising simply from the erection of a sculpture.
The ministers and members of Geum-o-wi standing outside the hall sensed the anomaly.
Even those who did not practice cultivation could feel the shift in atmosphere.
Some found themselves bending their knees without conscious thought.

“Could it be that an immortal has manifested…….”

Someone murmured the words in a trembling voice.
Yeon Bing-shim alone was surprised, yet a smile played at the corners of her mouth.
She had met the master of this Geum-sin in person.
She had seen the Gi-pan, the brush, the Go-geum with her own eyes.
She knew how casually Yup Jang-cheong handled such things in his ordinary hours.
And so the strange occurrence unfolding before her was not as foreign to her as it was to the others.

‘As expected. It’s Yup’s doing.’

The moment that thought occurred to her.
Boom—!
This time the entire mountain trembled gently.
Startled cries erupted from outside the hall.

“Look to the sky!”

Yeon Yang-nyeon strode directly outside.
Dense clouds were rolling in over Dong-san.
Until moments before, the sky had been clear.
A pillar of five-colored light descended straight through the clouds.
Its end reached precisely to the main hall of Ja-cheong Myo.
It was a light so vast it could be seen from anywhere on Je-do.
The people poured into the streets.
Merchants and customers alike ceased their work, and the Susa rose to the rooftops and high pavilions, their eyes fixed on Dong-san.

“What is that?”
“It’s coming from Ja-cheong Seongji!”
“Has a divine sign truly descended?”

Another portent unfurled near the Hwang-gung.
A cascade of five-colored auspicious clouds stretched wide across the palace walls.
The clouds did not scatter with the wind. Instead, they rotated slowly as if cradling the palace itself, casting down a luminous radiance.
The faces of the Miljeong hidden in Dong-san turned ashen.
When they had heard only Yeon Yang-nyeon’s words moments before, doubt was still possible.
It could have been political stagecraft. But no artifice could conjure such a celestial transformation before their very eyes.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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